Front-wheel drive and steer for motor-vehicles.



if. S. RUTKOWSKI & W. T. HUTGHISON.

FRONT WHEEL DRIVE AND STEER FOR MOTOR VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 23, 1912.

1,080,591 Patented Dec. 9, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 JbH/v 5. fiUT/(OWSKI.

. which the driving JOHN S. BUTKOWSKI AND WILLIAM T. HUTCHISON.

or SOUTH .BEND,

RUTKOWSKI ASSIGNOR TO SAID HUTCHISON.

FRONT-WHEEL DRIVE AND STEER FOR M ii M38591.

Application filed September 23, 1912.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Serial No. 721,841.

To all whom it may concern lle it known that we, J onx S. RUTKOWSKI and\ViLLiLi'ii T. lliirci-iisox, citizens of the Unittd States, residing atSouth Bend, in the county of St. Joseph and State of Indiana, haveinvented certain new and useful In'iprovenients in Front-\Yheel Drivesand Steers for Motor-Vehicles, of which the following is asplicification.

Our invention relates to a combined wheel drive and steering gear formotor vehicles. prefcral'ily for traction engines, tractors, and thelike, and is particularly adapted for use as a front wheel drive andsteering gear.

it is one of the objects of our invention to provide a compact. durableand comparatively simple means consisting of a small number of partswhereby the front wheels of the vehicle or tractor may, be power drivenand at the same time may be easily steered to determine the direction oftravel of the vehicle with little effort on the part of the driver orchauffeur.

A. still further object of our invention is to provide a construction ofthis character in 7 gear for the front wheels will at-all times be inmesh, no matter at. what angle the traction wheels may be turnedrelative to the driving gear.

A still further object of our invention is to house the gearing for thewheel within the wheels, so that the gearing may be substantiallyinclosed and protected.

Vfith these and other objects in view. the present invention consists inthe combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fullydescribed, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularlypointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes maybe made in the form, proportions, size, and minor details withoutdeparting from the scope or sacrificing any of the objects of theinvention.

Of the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of our invention with partsbroken away to disclose the driving gears for one of the wheels; Fig. 2is a vertical section on the line cc---cc of Fig.1, with the shafts A, Dand P shown in elevation; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of one of the frontwheels embodying our invention. viewed from the inner side of thevehicle; and Fig. 4 is a side elevation viewed from the outside of thevehicle with the traction wheel removed.

Upon referring to the drawings, A is the front driving shaft or axle, ofthe sprocket chain sprocket wheel C on the INDIA-NA; SAIDDECOR-VEHICLES.

Patented nee.9.191s.

driven by means B passing over the shaft or axle A.

The axle A has its ends journaled in suitable castings. at each machine,which castings identical, so that a description of one forward end ofthe are substantially will suffice for a clear understanding of both.

Each casting 1 has horizontally ant walls 4 and and 5.

lateral extensions and 3 preferably -disposed 2 substantially 1connected by vertical side Connecting the side walls 4: intermediate theextensions 2 and is a shelf or partition 6 having an opening 7 extendingvertically therethi'ough. The

opei'iing 7 with the openings 8 and 9 and 3. respectively, and anannular upstanding rib centric with the opening 7.

steering face an annular groove 11 shelf 6.

A pivot the head E and locked by screw 7', but any other the pivot F inthe head tures of our invention.

Carried by the head E may be disposed the axle A but the axle A.

In the bottom surface of centric with the annular counter-shaftP, whichpro I beveled gear K carried by t Supported on the shelf or 10 wherebythe head E may member through the opening 8 in the extension 2 and issecured to the head E in any suitable manner. The pivot F is shown asscrewed into disposed in vertical alinement in the extensions issurrounded by or \dg'e 10- conpartition 6 a head E having in its bottomsurto receive the rib be-turned on the F extends means of the set mannerof fastening- E will sutiice as this does not constitute one of thesalient fen is a stub shaft D on the end of which is rotatably thetraction wheel 0. The stub shaft D slightly above the plane of invertical aliiiement with mounted the head E congroove 11 is a socket 12in which is mounted one end of a jects through the opening 7 in thepartition 6 and has its other or lower end mounted in the opening Thecounter-shaft P substantially in vertical alinerotatably mountarebeveled gears OI'OtliQIWlSB se:

to rotate together. gear L is a large he traction wheel Eli 0 andmeshing with the beveled gear M is the driving gear N mounted on the endof the driving axle A.

Thelarge gear K is shown secured to the spokes of the traction wheel 0,but any other manner of mounting this gear K on the wheel 0 may beemployed.

The spokes Q of the wheel 0 are bent inwardly intermediate their ends sothat the the or rim R of the wheel 0 is disposed in substantially thesame vertical plane with the steering head E so that the pivotal pointof the steering head constitutes the exact vertical center of the wheel.The bent spokes Q. and the rim R also constitute a housing whereby thedriving gears of the wheels are inclosed and protected. Formed integralwith each steering head E are arms I connected by a rod J which in turnis connected with a steering wheel or lever (not shown) so that byshifting the rod J transversely of the vehicle the steering heads whichcarry the stub shafts upon which the wheels are mounted are swung inunison.

It will be seen that the beveled gears L and M have their axes inalinement with the pivots of the steering gear on which pivots thetraction wheels are swung. It will also be seen that the distancebetween the driven gear K of the traction wheel and the pivots of thesteering head E is equal to the radius of the gear L which meshes withthe driven gear K so that the gears K and L will always he in mesh,regardless of the angle at. which the traction wheels may be turnedrelative to the driving wheel.

In steering, the wheels will always be in parallelism, as indicated bydotted lines in Fig. 1. and the wheels may be turned when at astand-stilhby virtue of the pivot point of the steering head being inthe exact center of the wheel, which is impossible with the heavytractors now in use in which the wheels are mounted and steered as on anau-' tomobile, one wheel being advanced and the other retracted.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is 1. In a device ofthe character described, comprising a casting consisting of lateralextensions connected bv vertical side walls,

the lateral extensions provided with alining openings, a transversepartition connecting the vertical side walls intermediate the lateralextension, said partition being provided with an opening in alinementwith the open ings in the lateral extensions with an annular ribsurrounding the opening in the partition, a steering head supported onthe partition of the casting, said steering head being provided in itsbottom surface with an annular groove to receive the rib of thepartition, pivots on which the steering head may turn, a stub shaftcarried by the steering head, a traction wheel rotatively mounted on thestub shaft,.means for swinging the steering head upon its pivots, andmeans for driving thetractiou wheel.

25111 a device of the character described, comprising a casting havingupper and lower lateral extensions connected by vertical side walls, thelateral extensions pro vided with aiining openings, a transversepartition connecting the vertical side walls intermediate the lateralQXiLilSlOlh and having an opening in alinemeut with the openings in saidextensions. an annular rib surrounding the, opening in the transversepartition, a steering head supported on the transverse partition andprovided in its bottom surface with a circular socket and an annulargroove concentric with said socket to receive the rib of the partition,a pivot member supporting the upper end ofthe steering head, a shaftsupported on the lower lateral extension and its upper end extend ingthrough said partition into the socket in the steering head, a stubshaft carried by the steering head, a traction wheel mounted on the stubshaft. a driven gear on the traction wheel, a driving gear supported bythe casting, and intermediate gears mounted on said shaft for mesh withsaid driving and driven gears.

In testimony whereof we allix our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

JOHN RUTKOlVSKI. lVILLIAM T. HUT CHISON.

\Vitnesses:

L. M. HAMMERSCHMIDT, Gnonen On'rsoI-I.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each. by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

